Indians 

of 

Latin  America 


A Plea 
A Survey 
A Program 
A Bibliography 


Committee  on  Cooperation  in  Latin  America 
25  Madison  Avenue 
New  York 
1924 


Indians 

of 

Latin  America 


A Plea 
A Survey 
A Program 
A Bibliography 


Committee  on  Cooperation  in  Latin  America 
25  Madison  Avenue 
New  York 
1924 


INDIANS  OF  LATIN  AMERICA 


A Plea  for  the  Indian. 
The  Highland  Indians. 
The  Lowland  Indians.. 
A Suggested  Program. 
A Missionary  Policy... 
Bibliography 


Ignacio  Calderon 

George  M.  McBride 
.George  M.  McBride 
George  M.  McBride 

R.  J.  Hunt 

....Samuel  G.  Inman 


A PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS 
By  the  Minister  of  Bolivia  at  Washington 

There  is  a subject  that  ever  since  my  early  life  has  been  nearer 
to  my  heart  than  anything  else : that  is  the  improvement  of  the 
lamentable  condition  of  the  Indians  in  Bolivia — in  fact,  the  Indians 
of  all  South  America. 

Now  that  the  Committee  on  Cooperation  in  Latin  America  pro- 
poses to  undertake  the  humanitarian  and  truly  Christian  work  of 
giving  the  needed  help  to  these  Indians,  I am  glad  to  have  this 
chance  to  make  an  earnest  plea  in  their  favor. 

The  descendants  of  the  Great  Inca  Empire  had  reached  a very 
high  degree  of  peaceful  civilization  when  the  Spaniards  con- 
quered and  took  possession  of  their  land.  The  Inca  Empire, 
according  to  traditions,  was  founded  by  Manco-Capac,  helped 
by  his  wife,  Mama-Ocllo,  and  they  based  their  rule  and  domain 
not  by  the  use  of  force  but  by  teaching  the  arts  of  peace  and 
mutual  help. 

At  the  time  of  Pizarro’s  arrival,  the  Inca  Empire  extended  in 
the  north  up  to  what  is  now  the  republic  of  Colombia,  and 
towards  the  south  to  northern  Chile  and  Argentina.  Wonderful 
highways  connected  the  various  portions  of  the  vast  empire,  and 
the  people  lived  contented  and  happy  under  the  fatherly  rule  of 
the  Incas.  But  the  Spaniards,  taking  advantage  of  the  awe  which 
they  inspired  with  their  firearms  and  the  sight  of  ironclad  soldiers 
mounted  on  strange  looking  animials — the  Indians  never  having 
seen  horses  before — subdued  them  easily  and  reduced  them  to 
mere  slaves  to  their  will  and  power. 

Once  masters  of  the  country  the  Spaniards  treated  the  con- 
quered Indians  more  like  cattle  than  human  beings.  The  history 
of  the  Indian  race  during  the  centuries  that  have  passed  since  the 
conquest  is  an  uninterrupted  tale  of  woe,  misery  and  degradation. 
The  once  noble  and  happy  subjects  of  the  Inca  became  pariahs  in 
their  own  land,  mere  tools  of  the  whims  and  desires  of  their 
masters. 

Under  centuries  of  that  kind  of  treatment  they  naturally  lost 
their  spirit ; no  ambition  for  bettering  their  condition  could  remain 
in  hearts  that  v/ere  filled  with  despair.  The  once  proud  masters 
of  the  land  were  treated  as  slaves  by  the  white  invaders,  and 
later  the  half  breeds  turned  out  to  be  the  v/orst  of  task-masters. 


3 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


Thus  misery  and  indolence  took  the  place  of  ambition.  In  spite 
of  all  that,  however,  they  are  the  principal  agriculturists  and 
miners,  in  fact  the  main  factor  of  manual  labor  and  production, 
showing  remarkable  skill  in  their  work.  Whenever  by  chance 
they  are  given  an  opportunity  to  learn,  they  show  the  greatest 
desire  to  take  advantage  of  it. 

There  are  many  millions  of  these  unfortunate  Indians  in  the 
different  countries  of  South  and  Central  America  and  Mexico 
who  are  in  dire  need  of  help.  They  are  nominally  citizens  of  the 
several  republics,  but  have  little  idea  of  what  that  means ; and  as 
long  as  they  are  kept  in  their  present  state  they  will  remain  a great 
stumbling-block  to  the  orderly  and  democratic  development  of  the 
various  American  republics. 

The  Indians  need  to  be  educated,  especially  in  manual  training 
and  in  the  use  of  agricultural  implements  to  replace  the  obsolete 
and  primitive  methods  they  now  use.  They  could  be  taught  car- 
pentering, blacksmithing  and  other  useful  and  necessary  industries 
that  they  could  so  well  and  profitably  apply  to  their  needs. 

One  thing  is  very  important  and  that  is  to  give  to  the  mission- 
ary work  a distinctly  non-sectarian  character.  This  most  useful 
and  unselfish  work  will  find  a very  determined  opposition  and 
create  disturbances  if  it  is  not  carried  on  from  the  educational 
standpoint  and  entirely  for  the  benefit  and  improvement  of  the 
Indians.  To  save  them,  to  bring  them  up  to  the  realization  of 
the  immortal  destiny  of  their  souls,  no  doubt  requires  a high  spirit 
of  Christian  devotion  and  self-sacrifice.  Inspired  ourselves  by 
the  eternal  light  of  God,  we  should  feel  the  duty  of  bringing  that 
light  to  the  most  unfortunate  of  our  fellow  beings.  This  I feel  is 
the  noblest  work  to  which  a Christian  missionary  can  devote  his 
life’s  efforts. 

That  such  is  the  spirit  that  animates  the  members  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Cooperation  in  Latin  America,  I am  convinced,  and 
trusting  in  it,  I make  this  plea,  though  it  very  poorly  expresses 
the  importance  and  the  greatness  of  the  v/ork  I recommend. 

Ignacio  Calderon. 


4 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  HIGHLAND  INDIAN  OE  THE  ANDEAN 
REPUBLICS 


Importance  of  the  Problem 

One  of  the  greatest  problems  before  the  republics  of  the  Andes 
is  the  cjuestion  of  their  Indian  population.  It  is  also  one  of  the 
gravest.  Scarcely  any  other  matter  elicits  such  a general  interest 
among  the  leaders  of  government  and  education.  The  press  of 
these  countries  is  full  of  references  to  the  gravity  of  the  situation 
which  faces  them,  “El  problenia  del  indio”  is  a phrase  that  always 
brings  thoughtful  men  to  attention,  whether  in  legislative  halls, 
in  educational  conferences,  in  economic  discussions,  or  in  military 
plans.  A recent  number  of  the  bulletin  issued  by  the  La  Paz 
(Bolivia)  Geographical  Society  was  devoted  entirely  to  the  Indian. 
Two  of  the  most  popular  books  issued  from  the  Bolivian  press 
in  recent  years  are  “La  Raza  de  Bronce”  by  Alcides  Arguedos, 
and  “La  Educacion  del  Indio”  by  Alfredo  Guillen  Pinto. 

Numbers 

It  is  but  right  that  there  should  be  such  an  interest  in  the  abor- 
iginal races  of  these  republics,  for  they  form  the  predominating 
element  in  the  population.  In  Bolivia  50%  of  the  inhabitants 
are  classed  as  of  pure  Indian  blood,  while  27%  are  of  mixed  race 
with  the  Indian  character  predominating.  (Census  of  1900.)  In 
Peru,  out  of  a total  population  of  4,500,000,  the  Indians  number 
about  2,500,000,  or  over  55%.  In  Ecuador  there  are  practically 
no  persons  of  pure  Spanish  blood  and  the  pure  Indians  are  esti- 
mated as  about  1,600,000.  In  Colombia,  according  to  the  Ency- 
clopedia of  Latin  America,  from  40  to  45  per  cent,  of  the  popu- 
lation (5,071,101)  is  of  pure  Indian  blood.  These  four  countries 
then  show  as  an  average  about  52%  of  full-blooded  Indians  in 
their  population  and  contain  in  the  aggregate  nearly  7,500,000 
Indians. 

Character 

While  part  of  this  Indian  population  belongs  to  the  uncivilized 
tribes  of  the  Orinoco,  Amazon  and  La  Plata  lowlands,  the  major- 
ity (probably  some  55%)  live  on  the  plateau,  from  6,000  to 
14,000  feet  above  sea  level.  These  tribes  are  by  no  means  sav- 


5 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


ages.  They  belong  chiefly  to  the  peoples  who,  before  the  advent 
of  Europeans,  had  developed  their  own  specialized  culture,  equal 
in  many  respects  to  the  civilization  of  Europe  and  Asia  at  that  time. 

Tribes 

Chief  among  them  in  numbers  are  those  of  Quechua  speech. 
These  are  not  all  of  the  same  ethnic  division  but  came  under  the 
sway  of  the  Inca  empire  and  retain  the  lengua  general  of  that 
empire  as  their  present  tongue.  These  cover  almost  the  entire 
Peruvian  highlands,  the  southern  half  of  the  Bolivian  plateau 
and  all  of  the  uplands  of  Ecuador  as  far  as  Quito,  and  slightly 
beyond.  Next  in  importance  come  the  Aymaras,  who  occupy  the 
region  known  as  Collasuyo  in  Inca  times,  the  territory  about  Lake 
Titicaca,  and  eastward  on  the  higher  slopes  of  the  Cordillera  Real 
of  Northern  Bolivia.  Lastly  there  are  the  descendants  of  the 
Chibchas  and  other  civilized  tribes  in  Colombia.  Though  no  exact 
statistics  are  available  as  to  the  exact  numbers  of  these  different 


tribes,  they  are  probably  about  as  follows: 

Quechuas  . 3,000,CXX) 

Aymaras 500,000 

Colombian  civilized  Indians ....  500,000 

Total  4,000,000 


Character  and  Heritage  of  the  Indians 
There  is  no  need  to  describe  the  admirable  features  that  charac- 
terized the  Inca  Empire,  which  extended  over  almost  all  of  the 
upland  territory  embraced  in  the  three  republics  of  Bolivia,  Peru 
and  Ecuador,  nor  the  inferior  but  still  advanced  culture  of  the 
Chibchas  in  Colombia.  Prescott,  in  his  “Conquest  of  Peru,”  Sir 
Clements  Markham,  in  “The  Incas  of  Peru,”  and  Thomas  A. 
Joyce,  in  “South  American  Archaelogy,”  considered  these  people 
worthy  subjects  for  their  masterly  sketches.  The  Indians  of 
those  celebrated  days  were  by  no  means  exterminated  by  the  Span- 
ish. They  survive,  probably  in  reduced  numbers  and  certainly 
under  great  oppression,  but  still  capable  of  the  achievements  that 
distinguished  their  ancestors.  Among  the  humble  peons  on  the 
Andean  farms,  and  particularly  among  the  still  existing  indepen- 
dent communities  that  occupy  the  more  isolated  sections  of  the 
plateau,  there  live  many  worthy  sons  of  once  distinguished  fam- 


6 


The  Highland  Indians 


ilies.  Though  submerged  beneath  the  surface  of  the  present  social 
and  political  life,  though  deprived  of  almost  every  opportunity 
for  economic,  intellectual  or  spiritual  advancement,  these  rugged 
mountain  people  preserve  many  of  the  physical,  mental  and  moral 
qualities  -which  in  centuries  past  made  them  dominate  the  des- 
tinies of  the  entire  continent.  This  is  peculiarly  true  of  the 
Aymara  and  the  Quechua  tribes,  the  most  numerous  as  well  as 
the  most  promising  of  these  Indians.  Overcome  by  the  deceit 
and  savagery  of  the  Spaniard,  the  highland  Indian  has  proved 
himself  stronger  than  his  conqueror.  Of  rugged  physical  con- 
stitution, quiet  but  masterful  in  his  manner,  moral  above  many 
of  the  Christian  peoples  of  the  world,  this  hardy  mountaineer, 
lover  of  the  solitude,  has  forced  his  masters  to  conform  to  his 
ways,  has  obliged  the  race  of  conquerors  to  learn  his  language  in 
order  to  converse  with  him,  and,  though  peaceably  inclined  when 
undisturbed,  has  taught  the  whites  to  recognize  his  customs,  to 
respect  his  property,  and  to  live  in  an  ill-concealed  fear  of  the 
day  when  the  “Indiada”  shall  revolt.* 

No  step  that  affects  the  Indian  is  taken  in  these  countries,  either 
by  the  individual  owner  of  estates  or  by  government  itself,  with- 
out first  weighing  its  probable  reception  by  the  aborigines.  Though 
unschooled,  disfranchised  and  outcast,  the  Indian  of  the  highlands 
is  in  a very  real  sense  master  in  his  own  house. 

The  Indian's  Place  in  Industry 

At  the  present  time  the  highland  Indian  furnishes  the  only  sup- 
ply of  labor,  skilled  and  unskilled,  in  country  and  city  alike.  No 
field  is  tilled  but  by  his  hand,  no  harvest  is  reaped  but  with  his 
sickle.  He  moulds  every  sun-dried  brick,  he  dresses  each  stone 
that  goes  to  build  both  hovel  and  palace.  He  mines  the  ore, 
builds  roads  and  railroads,  constructs  all  bridges,  herds  the  flocks 
of  sheep,  llamas  and  alpacas.  With  his  droves  of  llamas  and 
donkeys  he  transports  much  of  the  merchandise,  since  only  few 
miles  of  railroad  exist  and  there  are  few  navigable  waters  on  the 
upland.  He  even  collects  the  fuel,  cooks  the  food,  carries  water 
and  performs  all  other  domestic  service.  With  the  advent  of 
modern  industries  he  is  learning  to  make  matches,  to  brew  beer, 
to  manufacture  shoes. 

*(See  David  Forbes’  ‘‘The  Aymara  Indians  of  Bolivia  and  Peru,”  London, 
1870;  E.  A.  Ross’  “South  of  Panama,’’  New  York,  1915;  and  A.  P.  Boudelier's 
“The  Islands  of  Titicaca  and  Coati,”  New  York  1910.) 


7 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


Indian  Communities 

These  highland  Indians  are  primarily  agriculturist.  The  other 
work  they  do  is  merely  incidental.  In  Bolivia  564,009  of  the 
total  population  is  classed  as  agricultural,  while  only  399,037  are 
engaged  in  “general  industries”  and  but  12,625  in  mining.  In 
Peru,  Ecuador  and  Colombia  the  proportion  of  agriculturalists  is 
probably  somewhat  higher.  While  many  Indians  in  these  coun- 
tries are  held  as  virtual  serfs  on  the  large  estates,  great  numbers 
are  entirely  free,  living  in  their  independent  communities ; some 
67  per  cent,  of  the  aborigines  of  the  Bolivian  highlands  and  over 
50  per  cent,  of  those  in  Peru.  They  hold  land  in  common,  as  in 
Inca  and  pre-Inca  days,  annually  allotting  a specified  extent  of 
tillable  soil  to  each  member.  The  flocks  are  herded  on  a common 
pasture.  Even  the  government  of  these  communities  is  left  largely 
in  the  hands  of  the  Indians.  The  authority  of  the  government  is 
exerted  only  in  collecting  taxes  and  curbing  serious  disorders  when 
necessary.  These  free  communities  are  most  numerous  in  the 
isolated  valleys  and  remote  corners  of  the  plateau,  where  whites 
seldom  travel.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  of  these  districts  rarely 
see  a white  man  and  live  the  simple  life  of  a mountain  agricul- 
tural people,  much  as  they  did  before  the  occupation  of  their  land 
by  Europeans.  In  such  regions  the  influence  of  the  Catholic 
Church  is  far  less  felt  than  in  districts  where  whites  have  settled. 

Adaptation  to  Environment 

Another  consideration  of  significance  for  the  future  of  these 
highland  republics  is  that  the  Indian  is  acclimated  to  these  great 
altitudes.  Where  foreigner  or  native-born  sons  of  Europeans 
succumb  to  the  deadly  soroche,  or  mountain  sickness,  the  Indian, 
with  his  enormous  lung  capacity  and  vigorous  heart  action,  seems 
thoroughly  at  home.  It  is  doubtful  if  the  mineral  wealth  of  these 
mountains  can  ever  be  developed  with  any  but  Indian  labor.  Immi- 
gration can  never  be  depended  upon  to  greatly  increase  the  popu- 
lation of  the  working  class.  The  industrial  future  of  the  Andean 
republics  lies  with  their  aboriginal  people. 

Need 

Yet  these  Indians  are  neither  educated  nor  Christianized.  For 
four  centuries  they  have  lived  side  by  side  with  Europeans,  yet 
the  vast  majority  of  them  can  neither  read  nor  write,  speak  no 


8 


The  Highland  Indians 


language  but  their  own,  are  familiar  with  only  a few  empty  sym- 
bols of  Christianity,  and  worship,  as  of  old,  the  Spirits  that,  to 
their  simple  fancy,  inhabit  fields,  rocks  and  mountain  peaks.  “The 
most  needy  and  uncared  for”  is  how  Speer  characterizes  these 
Quechuas  and  Aymaras  (South  American  Problems,  p.  215), 
though  he  testifies  that  they  are  “more  hopeful  than  our  North 
American  Indians.” 

Illiteracy 

No  statistics  are  available  as  to  the  illiteracy  among  these  high- 
land people.  However,  85  per  cent,  of  the  population  of  Bolivia 
are  completely  without  education  and  it  is  likely  that  not  more 
than  one  out  of  every  thousand  of  the  Indians  in  that  republic 
are  literate.  Conditions  in  Peru  are  little  better,  while  in  Ecuador 
and  Colombia  they  are  probably  worse.  It  is  doubtful  if  4,000 
persons  in  all,  among  these  highland  Indians,  could  be  found  who 
can  read  and  write. 

Religion 

As  to  religion,  they  are  still  pagan  at  heart.  Most  of  them  are 
baptized  with  Christian  names,  are  married  by  the  Church,  over 
a few  the  Christian  burial  rites  are  held.  Churches  stand  in  the 
towns  and  on  many  farms ; there  are  often  chapels  in  their  com- 
munities. But  the  average  Indian  sees  a priest  but  once  or  twice 
a year,  usually  on  occasion  of  the  principal  religious  feast  day. 
Otherwise  the  Indians’  Christianity  consists  mostly  of  the  cele- 
bration of  pagan  festivals  with  Christian  names,  in  pagan  fashion, 
before  or  in  the  Christian  house  of  worship,  in  which  Christian 
saints  and  pagan  spirits  are  perhaps  equally  prominent  in  the 
participants’  mind.  At  the  little  shrine  (called  Calvario)  that 
stands  on  a high  peak  overlooking  the  city  of  La  Paz  (Bolivia), 
the  Indians  may  often  be  seen  with  their  cups  of  incense,  kneeling 
with  their  backs  to  the  Christian  symbols  of  the  crucifix  and  the 
Virgin’s  picture,  as  they  face  the  wide  valley  below  and  mutter 
phrases  in  neither  Spanish  nor  Latin,  but  in  their  deep,  guttural 
Aymara. 

In  their  celebration  of  religious  observances,  the  Indian  finds 
his  deepest  degradation.  For  months  at  a time  he  works,  indus- 
triously in  his  tiny  fields,  assists  his  still  more  industrious  wife 
about  her  household  duties,  plays  with  his  red-cheeked,  chubby 
children  about  his  humble  doorway,  or  tenderly  cares  for  his 


9 


lNDiA::j  OF  Latin  America 


domestic  animals.  Pie  warms  the  new-born  lamb  in  his  bosom, 
adorns  his  pet  llamas  with  fancy  bits  of  colored  wool  or  carries 
the  load  of  a tired  donkey  on  his  own  back.  All  this  time  he 
thriftily  hoards  his  paltry  earnings  and  lives  a sober,  quiet  life 
among  the  members  of  his  clan.  Then  comes  the  feast  day.  The 
best  woven  homespun  — bright  with  variegated  colors  — clothes 
are  brought  out  for  all  the  family.  The  father  dons  his  festive 
garb  of  feather  head-dress,  tiger  skin  and  hideous  mask,  and  takes 
his  shrill  reed  pipe  or  native  drum  down  from  the  low  rafters  that 
support  his  roof  of  thatch.  On  foot  they  set  out  at  grey  dawn, 
through  the  biting  cold  of  the  high  plateau,  the  older  children  trot- 
ting beside  their  parents,  the  babies  upon  their  mothers’  backs. 
For  hours  they  trudge  toward  the  nearest  church.  There  are 
gathered  friends  and  kin  from  all  the  neighborhood.  There  too 
are  found  the  half-breed  venders  of  chicha  (a  native  fermented 
drink)  and  alcohol,  while  candles  and  incense  may  be  bought  and 
other  necessities  for  the  festival.  Groups  of  acquaintances  form 
about  the  booths  where  liquor  is  being  sold  and  the  Indians  begin 
their  Christian  fiesta.  To  the  music  of  pipe  and  drum  they  dance 
their  ancient  pagan  dances,  before,  around  and  into  the  church 
enclosure.  At  times  even  before  the  altar  they  continue  this 
bacchanal.  Each  brief  interval  of  rest  is  marked  by  generous 
draughts  of  liquor,  the  Indian,  before  he  touches  the  beverage  to 
his  lips,  carefully  spilling  over  a few  drops  as  libation  to  mother 
earth,  as  have  done  his  ancestors  from  time  immemorial.  For 
several  days  and  nights  a ceaseless  round  of  alternating  dance 
and  drink  is  continued,  until  men  and  women  alike,  the  latter  some- 
times with  their  babes  still  slung  upon  their  backs,  fall  in  drunken 
stupor  upon  the  ground.  Occasional  fights  occur  as  enemies  meet 
or  differences  arise  among  intoxicated  friends.  Early,  if  possible, 
during  this  celebration  the  priest  arrives  and  goes  through  the 
form  of  Christian  mass.  Then  he  collects  his  fees  of  silver,  grain, 
poultry  or  sheep,  and  off  he  rides  to  other  celebrations  at  the 
neighboring  centers.  The  supply  of  alcohol  exhausted  or  the 
power  to  purchase  it,  the  Indians  slowly  recover  from  their  ca- 
rousal and  wander  sadly  home  again  to  live  the  life  of  the  pagan 
peasant. 

Such  is  the  Christianity  that  prevails  among  the  aboriginal 
inhabitants  of  these  highland  republics. 

Their  paganism  is  more  frequently  in  evidence.  Each  crest 


10 


The  Highland  Indians 


along  the  mountain  road  is  marked  by  heaps  of  stones,  where 
every  passerby  should  build  a miniature  house  for  some  occult 
purpose  of  spirit  worship.  xA.t  dangerous  places,  where  overhang- 
ing rocks  threaten  the  traveler,  the  Indians  who  pass  make  offer- 
ings of  coca  to  the  spirits  who  inhabit  the  hills.  When  an  animal 
is  killed  for  its  meat  they  catch  the  blood  and  dash  it  upon  the 
end  of  their  low  adobe  houses,  under  the  thatched  gable,  explain- 
ing their  action  to  any  inquisitive  stranger  by  a shrug  of  the 
shoulders  and  the  single  word,  “costumbre”  (it  is  the  custom). 
A survival,  it  would  appear  to  be,  of  some  ancient  observance  in 
spirit  worship.  When  crossing  a stream  they  call  repeatedly  the 
names  of  any  children  who  may  be  in  the  company,  for  fear,  as 
they  say,  that  the  spirits  of  these  little  ones  may  not  dare  to  pass 
over  and  so  some  harm  should  befall  them.  These,  the  common 
things  of  an  Indian’s  life,  attest  the  religion  which  holds  most  con- 
spicuous place  in  his  heart.  In  spite  of  the  veneer  which  four 
centuries  of  priestly  instruction  have  given  him,  the  Indian  of  the 
plateau  is  still  a pagan. 

Efforts  to  Uplift  the  Indian 

This  is  the  Indian  problem  that  confronts  the  Andean  repub- 
lics. Its  solution  is  one  of  the  prime  matters  that  concern  their 
governments.  The  question  is  being  constantly  discussed.  Some 
plan  for  solving  it  is  always  under  consideration.  But  none  has 
yet  been  found,  due  in  part  to  limited  funds,  but  especially  to  that 
peculiar  helplessness  of  Latin  American  people  which  results  from 
lack  of  both  initiative  and  perseverance. 

Government  Efforts 

The  history  of  efforts  made  in  behalf  of  the  Indian  is  quickly 
told.  Guillen  in  his  “La  Education  del  Indio”  (La  Paz,  1919), 
recounts  the  little  that  has  been  done  in  Bolivia.  It  is  typical  of 
the  other  lands.  In  1826  a dozen  free  scholarships  for  Indians 
were  offered  in  one  of  the  seminaries  of  the  church.  Result 
apparently  nil.  In  1905,  after  a lapse  of  three-quarters  of  a cen- 
tury, another  attempt  was  made.  This  time  “Profesores  ambu- 
lantes”  were  appointed,  educational  circuit  riders  we  would  call 
them,  to  conduct  classes  in  the  districts  where  Indian  population 
was  densest,  giving  a few  weeks  at  a time  to  each  district.  It  was 
impossible  to  find  competent  teachers  who  would  undergo  the 


11 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


inconveniences  and  hardships  entailed.  The  plan  was  dropped. 
Six  years  later  a normal  school  established  in  the  capital  to  train 
teachers  for  such  work  found  it  impossible  to  secure  candidates. 
It  has  now  been  moved  to  a rural  district  and  efforts  are  being 
made  to  secure  pure-blooded  Indians  who  will  take  the  training 
required  for  work  among  their  own  people.  But  so  far  little 
success  has  been  met,  for  the  Indian  looks  with  suspicious  eye 
upon  the  work  of  his  white  masters,  fearing  that  it  is  only  a 
scheme  to  add  an  additional  burden  to  his  already  oppressed  race. 
Better  success  has  been  met  with  in  the  army,  where  some  attempt 
is  being  made  to  give  elementary  instruction  to  illiterates.  But 
most  of  the  Indians,  not  enjoying  the  privileges  of  citizenship, 
are  not  obliged  to  take  the  military  service,  so  this  effort  is  not 
far-reaching. 

Another  effort  made  by  the  government  was  the  offer  of  a 
pecuniary  award  to  any  one  who  would  teach  an  Indian  to  read 
and  write.  For  some  years  this  offer  has  stood,  the  government 
holding  itself  ready  to  pay  Bs.  20.00  ($8.00)  per  head  for  any 
Indian  so  taught.  To  this  there  has  been  little  response.  It  has 
been  considered  beneath  the  dignity  of  a professor  to  stoop  to  this 
means  of  augmenting  his  income.  About  the  only  ones  to  take 
advantage  of  the  offer  have  been  some  of  the  missionaries  who 
found  that  this  money  would  help  support  classes  that  they  had 
opened  for  Indians  in  connection  with  their  church  work. 

Evangelical  Missions 

Before  censuring  the  governments  of  these  countries  and  the 
Catholic  Church  too  severely  for  this  negiect  of  the  Indian  we 
should  remember  that  neither  have  our  Protestant  missions  done 
much  to  alleviate  his  condition.  In  Ecuador  sporadic  efforts  have 
given  so  far  extremely  meager  results.  In  Colombia  no  special 
work  has  been  undertaken  for  the  Indian,  and  the  churches  and 
schools  for  whites  usually  fail  to  reach  him.  In  Peru,  British 
missions  have  made  a beginning,  as  have  also  the  Adventists.  In 
Cuzco,  the  nurses  of  the  South  American  Evangelical  Union  serve 
Indians  as  well  as  whites,  and  the  magnificent  Urco  farm  acquired 
some  years  ago  is  beginning  to  have  an  influence  upon  the  peons 
that  belong  on  it.  though  so  far  its  influence  has  been  chiefly  with 
the  neighboring  whites.  The  most  outstanding  mission,  distinctly 
for  the  Peruvian  Indian,  is  that  of  the  Adventists  near  Puno  on 


12. 


The  Highland  Indians 


Lake  Titicaca.  Here  nursing  was  the  foundation  upon  which 
the  work  was  built,  but  this  was  accompanied  by  strong  evan- 
gelistic efforts,  and  by  educational  work.  It  has  been  very  suc- 
cessful, due  in  part  to  the  close  sympathy  shown  by  the  American 
missionaries  for  the  Indians  and  in  part  to  their  having  found  in 
the  person  of  a pure  Aymara  Indian  a real  apostle  to  his  people. 

In  Bolivia  some  efforts  are  being  made  to  evangelize  and  edu- 
cate the  Indian.  On  the  shores  of  Lake  Titicaca  the  independent 
Peniel  Hall  Society,  recently  taken  over  by  the  Canadian  Bap- 
tists, has  bought  a farm  with  its  some  275  Indian  serfs.  A school- 
house  was  built  with  funds  raised  locally.  Classes  for  boys  have 
been  held,  but  great  difficulty  has  been  experienced  in  the  matter 
of  handling  the  Indians  and  meeting  the  opposition  of  certain 
white  neighbors  who  prefer  to  keep  the  Indian  ignorant  so  that 
they  can  exploit  him.  It  is  greatly  to  be  desired  that  this  attempt 
to  educate  and  evangelize  the  Indian  should  succeed.  Funds  for 
its  establishment  were  left  by  Mr.  Chiriotto.  an  Italian  American 
who  bequeathed  his  small  fortune  to  the  society. 

Among  the  Quechuas  of  southern  Bolivia,  in  the  Department 
of  Potosi,  work  has  been  carried  on  for  some  ten  years  by  the 
Bolivian  Indian  Mission,  a group  of  missionaries,  mostly  from 
New  Zealand.  They  have  several  small  stations  with  evangelistic, 
educational  and  medical  features.  Though  their  funds  are  very 
limited,  they  have  made  a promising  beginning,  in  a very  needy 
field.  In  addition  to  these  undertakings  there  are  classes  for 
Indians  and  religious  services  for  Indians  conducted  in  connec- 
tion with  several  of  the  churches  in  La  Paz  and  Oruro.  Other- 
wise nothing  has  been  done  by  Protestant  missions  in  any  of  these 
Andean  republics. 

The  Indians  Desire  Education 

Yet  the  Indian  is  often  eager  for  instruction,  can  he  but  feel 
that  there  is  not  an  ulterior  motive  in  the  plans  proposed  for  his 
uplift.  The  few  schools  that  have  been  opened  by  government 
and  missionary  agencies  find  a satisfactory  response  on  the  part 
of  the  Indian.  Many  of  them  realize  that  a new  situation  con- 
fronts their  race  as  the  economic  development  of  the  plateau 
advances.  They  see  that  the  coming  of  railroads,  the  opening  of 
mines  and  the  development  of  commerce  have  wrought  changes 
within  the  last  few  decades  that  far  exceed  the  accumulated  influ- 


13 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


ence  of  preceding  centuries.  They  realize  that  the  aboriginal 
race  must  be  prepared  to  meet  a new  condition.  Not  infrequently 
a request  is  sent  to  the  government  for  the  opening  of  a school  in 
some  free  Indian  community.  One  such  petition  was  accompa- 
nied by  an  offer  to  meet  all  expenses,  to  build  and  equip  a school- 
house,  and  to  pay  the  salary  of  the  teacher.  Moreover  parents 
are  seeking  to  secure  for  their  children  the  advantages  of  the  city 
schools.  One  old  Indian,  animated  by  such  a desire,  appeared  at 
the  La  Paz  American  Institute,  in  his  homespun  clothes,  with  hide 
sandals  on  his  feet,  and  a variegated  poncho  over  his  shoulders. 
He  came  into  the  school  grounds,  carrying  his  boy’s  trunk  on  his 
back.  On  being  presented  to  the  principal  he  dropped  to  his 
knees  and  kissed  the  extended  hand,  begging  to  have  his  son 
received  as  a pupil.  The  boy  was  enrolled  and  within  two  years, 
though  competing  with  white  Bolivians  and  foreigners  of  several 
nationalities,  he  had  outclassed  many  of  his  fellows  and  received 
the  highest  awards  in  English.  Each  quarter  the  father  kept  his 
promise  to  come  and  pay  the  tuition,  usually  bringing  as  a gift 
for  the  head  of  the  school  a quantity  of  eggs  carefully  packed  in  a 
home-made  basket.  While  such  examples  are  rare,  they  mark  the 
awakening  of  the  Indians  to  the  need  of  an  education. 

Governments  Welcome  Help 
In  spite  of  the  great  neglect  and  apparent  indifference  of  the 
respective  governments  toward  the  uplift  of  the  Indian,  any  effort 
made  to  assist  in  the  task  will  meet  with  the  approval  and  support 
of  many  of  the  most  influential  men  of  the  countries.  These 
leaders  realize  that,  at  present,  the  illiterate  aborigine,  with  his 
primitive  ideas  and  his  antiquated  ways  of  life,  is  a perpetual 
drag  to  the  progress  of  the  republics.  Eorming  such  a prepon- 
derant portion  of  the  population  and  providing  the  only  available 
labor  supply  for  agricultural  and  industrial  development,  the 
Indian,  they  see,  must  be  prepared  for  the  part  he  will  inevitably 
play  in  the  nation’s  advance.  He  must  be  made  an  integral  part 
of  the  republic.  This  cannot  be  done  without  a certain  degree  of 
education.  Realizing  this,  leaders  of  political  affairs  are  keen  to 
take  advantage  of  any  assistance  which  they  can  secure  from  out- 
side agencies.  In  Peru  both  the  American  Adventists  and  the 
British  m.ission  at  Cuzco  have  met  cordial  support.  When  fanati- 
cal opponents  began  a persecution  of  the  former  and  their  Indian 


14 


The  Highland  Indians 


converts  near  Puno,  the  matter  was  quickl}'  taken  up  at  Lima  and 
this  incident  furnished  the  occasion  at  least  for  the  enactment  of 
a law  providing  complete  religious  toleration  in  Peru,  which  up 
to  that  time  had  stood  out  stubbornly  against  this  liberal  measure. 
In  Bolivia  every  effort  to  help  the  Indian  has  received  the  cordial 
encouragement  of  the  authorities.  Both  at  the  Peniel  Hall  farm 
and  at  the  stations  maintained  by  the  Bolivian  Indian  Mission, 
government  help  has  been  received.  Wdien  the  former  was  estab- 
lished the  Bolivian  iMinister  in  Washington  wrote  his  congratula- 
tion, sent  a liberal  contribution  to  help  the  work  and  urged  his 
friends  to  do  the  same.  The  second  Vice-President  of  Bolivia, 
in  speaking  to  a missionary  who  was  returning  to  the  United 
States,  urged  him  “Tell  your  people  in  North  America  that  we 
shall  be  glad  to  have  them  come  to  our  country.  Tell  them  to 
come  in  colonies  and  settle  here.  Have  them  bring  their  Protes- 
tant pastors  with  them  that  our  Indians  may  learn  from  them 
what  the  true  gospel  really  is,  for  that  our  priests  have  never 
taught  them.” 


15 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  LOWLAND  INDIANS  OF  SOUTH  AMERICA 
Distribution 

These  people,  in  contrast  with  the  highland  peoples,  are  largely 
uncivilized.  Due  in  great  part  to  their  unfavorable  geographical 
environment,  they  have  never  developed  in  the  social  scale  but 
remain,  as  they  have  been  for  ages  past,  in  a state  of  greater  or 
less  savagery.  They  are  divided  into  multitudinous  small  tribes, 
sometimes  loosely  federated,  but  generally  at  more  or  less  open 
warfare,  one  with  the  other,  and  each  speaking  a distinct  language 
or  dialect.  The  Araucanians  of  south  central  Chile  are  far  above 
other  lowland  tribes,  possessing  a fairly  high  degree  of  civilization, 
with  agriculture  and  stock-raising  well  advanced  and  an  organized 
patriarchal  government. 

The  lowland  Indians  inhabit  the  great  forests  and  grass  lands 
of  the  central  plains  about  the  headwaters  of  the  Orinoco,  the 
Amazon  and  the  La  Plata  rivers,  the  coastal  regions  of  the  Carib- 
bean, the  extreme  southern  end  of  the  continent,  and  the  humid 
regions  along  the  Pacific  in  Ecuador  and  Colombia. 

Any  calculation  of  the  numbers  of  lowland  Indians  in  South 
America  can  be  only  rough  estimates.  No  census  of  the  republics 
concerned  attempts  to  state  their  Indian  population  of  the  forests 
in  more  than  general  terms.  The  following  is  an  estimate  based 
upon  the  most  reliable  data  available : 


Brazil  

1,300,000 

Peru  

1,000,000 

Ecuador  

700,000 

Bolivia  

400,000 

Venezuela 

300,000 

Chile 

102,000 

Colombia  

100,000 

Paraguay  

50,000 

Argentina  

30,000 

The  Guianas 

40,000 

Total 

4,022,000 

(In  Uruguay  alone  of  the  South  American  countries  has  the 
pure-blooded  Indian  population  entirely  disappeared.) 


16 


The  Lowland  Indians 


Needs 

As  to  their  needs,  it  will  suffice  to  state  that  very  little  has  been 
done  for  them  in  any  way,  either  by  missionary  agencies  or  by  the 
governments  in  whose  jurisdiction  they  live.  In  general  they  have 
been  entirely  neglected  and  left  in  their  primitive  state,  to  become 
the  prey  of  a slowly  advancing  wave  of  civilization,  in  which 
Christianity  has  played  no  part.  They  have  thus  been  entirely 
at  the  mercy  of  traders,  industrialists  and  slave  raiders.  Brazil, 
in  her  early  history,  depended  very  largely  upon  the  raids  made 
by  the  Paulistas,  or  slave  hunters  from  Sao  Paulo,  for  her  supply 
of  labor.  Though  slavery  is  forbidden  by  all  the  nations  of 
America,  the  application  of  this  protection  is  often  not  extended 
to  the  savage  Indians  who  live  far  removed  from  the  shelter  of 
the  law.  Their  condition  in  many  places  has  been  aggravated  by 
the  overlapping  of  territorial  claims,  and  the  consequent  impossi- 
bility of  policing  such  disputed  areas.  The  situation  revealed  in 
Hardenburg’s  “The  Putumayo,  the  Devil’s  Paradise’’  (London, 
1912),  the  “Red  Book  of  the  Putumayo,’’  and  Sir  Roger  Case- 
ment’s official  report  (Foreign  Office  Reports,  Misc.  No.  8,  1912) 
is  probably  paralleled  in  most  of  the  rubber  districts  of  interior 
South  America.  In  Chile  the  valiant  Araucanians  that  could 
never  be  conquered  by  Inca  or  Spanish  arms  have  finally  yielded 
to  the  gradual  influence  of  the  white  man’s  firewater  and  his  per- 
sistent “peaceful  penetration”  of  their  territory.  The  Argentine 
Indians  very  largely  ceased  to  be  a factor  in  the  national  develop- 
ment after  General  Roca’s  ruthless  campaign  of  1879  on  the 
southern  pampas. 


Failure  of  Evangelization 

Most  attempts  to  Christianize  these  savage  Indians  have  met 
with  failure.  Though  the  Catholic  priests  penetrated  many  of  the 
remote  regions  during  colonial  times  their  work  has  not  survived. 
The  great  mission  organizations  built  up  in  Paraguay  by  the 
Jesuits  fell  into  ruins  when  these  padres  were  expelled  from 
Spanish  possessions  in  1767.  In  eastern  Peru  about  all  that  is 
left  of  the  extensive  work  carried  on  in  the  vast  interior  bishopric 
of  Maynas  is  the  history  of  the  attempt  made.  In  southern  Ven- 
ezuela and  eastern  Colombia  ruins  alone  remain  to  mark  the 
efforts  directed  toward  the  Christianization  of  the  aborigines  by 
Catholic  missionaries.  Protestant  efforts  have  been  even  less 


17 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


successful.  Allen  Gardiner’s  devoted  attempt  to  reach  the  Fue- 
gians  is  typical  of  other  such  undertakings.  The  scattered  settle- 
ments in  vast,  sparsely  populated  forests,  an  inhospitable  climate, 
the  difficulties  presented  by  a tropical  jungle,  and  the  hostility  of 
the  natives  themselves  toward  all  whites,  have  combined  to  destroy 
work  attempted,  and  to  deter  even  the  most  daring  from  under- 
taking a task  which  seemed  both  hazardous  and  futile.  Conse- 
quently the  uncivilized  Indians  of  the  lowlands  have  been  almost 
entirely  neglected  as  yet  by  Evangelical  missionary  agencies. 
Though  most  of  the  cities  of  Latin  America  contain  Protestant 
schools  and  churches,  the  vast  interior  areas,  with  their  many 
tribes  of  savage  or  semi-savage  aborigines,  still  are  almost 
untouched.  Prof.  Farabee,  anthropologist  and  explorer,  is  quoted 
as  saying  that  over  an  area  equal  to  two-thirds  of  the  LTnited 
States  the  Indians  live  in  almost  complete  paganism. 

Outstanding  exceptions  to  this  neglect  are  the  missions  main- 
tained by  the  South  American  Missionary  Society  (British) 
among  the  Araucanians  of  south-central  Chile,  the  Fuegians,  and 
the  Indians  of  the  Gran  Chaco,  between  Paraguay  and  Bolivia. 
To  these  may  be  added  the  work  done  by  Anglican  agencies  in 
British  Guiana.  In  these  centers  progress  is  being  made,  but 
what  can  a few  such  stations  do  for  the  millions  of  Indians  scat- 
tered over  so  vast  a territory?  As  far  as  the  Indian  is  concerned. 
South  America  remains  what  it  has  always  been,  from  a mission- 
ary viewpoint,  the  Neglected  Continent,  The  gradual  approach 
of  the  two  Americas  has  produced  little  change  there.  It  has  but 
brought  the  problem  nearer  to  our  doors. 

Permanence  Needed 

These  repeated  failures  give  conclusive  evidence  of  the  diffi- 
culty of  undertaking  the  evangelization  of  the  lowland  Indians. 
They  present  one  of  the  most  difficult  missionary  problems  exist- 
ing. Only  a well  organized,  persistently  maintained  effort,  can 
accomplish  the  task.  It  will  require  the  power  and  the  perma- 
nence which  only  the  strongly  established  missionary  boards  can 
employ.  Sporadic,  independent,  or  poorly  equipped  and  feebly 
maintained  efforts  will  but  fail  as  have  failed  many  other  attempts 
in  the  last  four  centuries.  The  work  must  be  maintained,  though 
the  workers  fall.  Neither  tropical  disease,  nor  enervating  cli- 
mate, nor  opposition  by  exploiters  of  the  Indians,  nor  the  difficul- 


18 


The  Lowland  Indians 


ties  presented  by  the  character  of  the  country  and  of  the  people, 
must  be  allowed  to  interfere.  It  will  be  a persevering  fight, 
extended  over  many  years,  in  which  all  the  forces  of  nature  and 
of  evil  men  will  be  arrayed  against  the  undertaking.  Strong 
men,  backed  by  strong,  permanent  organization,  will  be  required 
to  triumph.  Unless  such  can  be  provided,  the  field  must  be  left 
to  its  fate  at  the  hands  of  industrial  and  commercial  interests, 
who  usually  exploit  or  exterminate  but  do  not  uplift. 

Encouragements  Offered 

In  any  attempt  that  will  result  in  the  civilization  of  the  Indians 
cordial  support  may  be  expected  from  most  of  the  governments 
concerned.  They  are  already  interested,  far  more  than  the  Prot- 
estant Church,  if  the  truth  be  said,  in  the  uplift  of  the  aboriginal 
element  in  their  population.  In  Brazil  wonderful  work  has  been 
accomplished  by  Colonel  Rondon,  with  whom  Roosevelt  traveled 
in  the  unknown  interior.  This  officer  is  a true  friend  of  the  wild 
Indians  and  has  become  a great  apostle  of  civilization  among  them. 
But  the  Gospel  does  not  form  a part  of  his  message.  His  cooper- 
ation, however,  and  that  of  his  government  may  be  depended 
upon  in  any  effort  to  bring  the  Indian  into  the  pale  of  civilization. 
In  Chile,  Bolivia  and  Peru  there  exist  societies  or  groups  who 
are  interested  in  all  that  will  tend  to  uplift  the  aborigine  and  their 
support  will  be  extended,  generally  in  a cordial  wav.  They  are 
already  groping  toward  a solution  of  this  great  problem. 

THE  INDIANS  OF  MEXICO  AND  CENTRAL  AMERICA 

Origin 

What  has  been  said  of  the  history,  character,  condition  and 
need  of  the  aborigines  of  South  America  applies  in  general  to  the 
Indians  that  inhabit  Mexico  and  Central  America.  Of  the  same 
race,  they  developed  much  as  did  their  related  tribes  of  the  south, 
originating,  where  geographical  conditions  favored  it,  their  auto- 
urthonous  culture,  and  vegetating  in  the  malarial  lowlands.  Con- 
sequently they  differed  largely  according  to  the  altitude  of  the 
country  which  they  inhabited.  Subjected  to  the  same  ruthless 
conquest  by  the  Spanish  adventurers,  they  fared  a similar  fate, 
the  civilized  upland  peoples  being  reduced  to  practical  serfdom 
wherever  the  Spaniard  became  established,  the  lowlanders  remaiii- 


19 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


ing  largely  as  in  pre-Colombian  days,  in  a varying  degree  of 
savagery. 

Importance  of  the  Problem 

The  missionary  problem  in  Mexico  can  not  be  understood, 
much  less  an  attempt  to  solve  it  undertaken,  without  taking  into 
account  the  Indian  element  in  the  population.  The  same  may  be 
said  of  Guatemala  and  in  a lesser  degree  of  the  other  Central 
American  republics,  with  the  notable  exception  of  Costa  Rica, 
where  the  pure-blooded  Indian  survives  only  in  very  reduced  num- 
bers. In  Mexico  some  35  per  cent,  of  the  entire  population  is  of 
full-blood  Indians.  Tlaxcala,  one  of  the  most  densely  populated 
states,  is  almost  entirely  Indian.  In  Oaxaca  90  per  cent,  at  least 
of  the  people  have  no  Spanish  blood.  Other  states,  particularly 
in  the  south,  have  almost  as  large  Indian  percentages.  Though, 
throughout  Mexico  the  cities  are  predominantly  Spanish  in  char- 
acter, one  has  only  to  leave  the  beaten  paths  of  trade  and  travel 
to  find  the  Indian  everywhere.  Especially  in  the  south  part  of 
the  republic  they  form  the  great  mass  of  the  rural  population. 

They  do  not  form  a homogeneous  ethnic  or  linguistic  element. 
Due  in  great  part  to  the  mountainous  character  of  the  topography, 
they  live,  and  have  always  lived,  in  widely  separated  communities. 
Occupying  isolated  valleys  and  mountain  crests,  each  tribe  knows 
little  of  the  world  beyond  its  own  narrow  confines.  In  Mexico 
there  are  said  to  be  over  one  hundred  different  languages  spoken. 
The  one  state  of  Oaxaca  contains  fifteen  linguistic  divisions:  that 
of  Chiapa  thirteen. 

Economic  Conditions 

In  Guatemala  about  60  per  cent,  of  the  total  population  is  of 
pure  Indian  blood,  descendants  largely  of  the  highly  organized 
pre-Colombian  empire  of  the  Quiche  (Statesman’s  Year  Book 
1919).  These  Indians,  originally  occupying  independent  com- 
munities and  holding  their  lands  in  common,  have  gradually  been 
brought  under  the  domination  of  a very  degrading  bondage,  that 
of  the  contract  labor  system  or  peonage,  whereby,  either  because 
of  their  attachment  to  the  soil  which  their  families  have  held  for 
centuries,  or  because  of  debts  in  which  the  wealthy  land  owners 

Frederick  Starr,  “Mexico  and  United  States,’’  Chcago,  1914;  H.  R.  Mill, 
“International  Geography.’’  London,  1900;  Matias  Romero,  “Geographical  and 
Statisitcai  Notes  on  Mexico”  in  “Coffee  and  India  Rubber  Culture  in  Mexico,’’ 
N.  Y.,  1898;  E,  D.  Trowbridge,  “Mexico  Today  and  Tomorrow,’’  N.  Y.,  1919, 


20 


The  Lowland  Indians 


have  been  able  to  entangle  them,  they  are  held  practically  as  serfs, 
with  no  political  or  economic  freedom.  Their  condition  has  been 
growing  worse  rather  than  improving,  particularly  since  the  devel- 
opment of  the  country  in  recent  years  has  increased  the  demands 
for  labor  and  offered  premiums  to  the  landlord  who  had  many 
peons  at  his  disposal.  (See  Dana  G.  Munro,  “The  Five  Republics 
of  Central  America,’’  N.  Y.,  1918.) 

As  in  South  America,  exact  enumeration  of  the  Indians  is 
entirely  lacking,  the  following  figures  being  only  approximately 
correct  but  based  upon  the  most  accurate  statistics  available : 


Mexico  5,224,500 

Guatemala  1,202,150 

Salvador 234,650 

Nicaragua  180,000 

Panama 91 ,000 

Honduras 60,000 

British  Honduras  20,0(X) 

Costa  Rica 3,500 


Total 7,015,800 


Character 

The  highland  Indians  of  Mexico  and  Central  America  are 
sedentary  agriculturalists  with  well  established  social  customs, 
peaceable,  industrious,  submissive.  Though  unable  to  read  or 
write,  they  are  equal  in  intelligence  to  the  average  white  or  mes- 
tizo and  usually  far  superior  in  moral  character,  except  where 
contaminated  by  exotic  vices.  They  form  the  base  of  the  popu- 
lation of  the  countries  where  they  live,  particularly  southern  Mex- 
ico and  Guatemala,  performing  most  of  the  manual  labor  and 
providing  almost  the  only  labor  supply  in  both  city  and  rural 
districts.  In  the  country  they  often  live  as  serfs,  being  bought 
and  sold  with  the  farms,  attached  to  the  soil  so  strongly  that  it 
matters  little  to  them  who  owns  the  estate  or  who  rules  the  repub- 
lic, so  long  as  they  are  left  to  till  their  parcels  of  ground  unmo- 
lested. In  some  districts  they  have  not  yet  passed  under  the  con- 
trol of  landlords  but  live  in  free  communities,  holding  their  lands 
in  common  and  almost  entirely  independent  of  the  race  that  has 
conquered  their  country.  In  the  cities  they  work  either  for  a 


21 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


of  chattels  in  the  rights  and  privileges  that  they  enjoy.  Few  of 
these  highland  Indians  possess  even  the  most  rudimentary  edu- 
cation and,  though  nominally  Catholic  and  often  even  fanatical 
in  their  adherence  to  the  Church,  they  are  Christian  only  on  the 
surface,  their  whole  daily  life  being  influenced  far  more  by  the 
pagan  beliefs  and  superstitions  that  they  have  preserved  unchanged 
from  time  immemorial.  Yet  these  highland  Indians  are  Mexico’s 
hope.  Upon  them  depends,  in  very  large  measure,  the  future  of 
the  nation. 

Lowland  Indians 

The  lowland  Indians  are  generally  savages.  Their  native  cul- 
ture is  of  the  crudest  and  is  still  almost  entirely  unaffected  by  con- 
tact with  civilization.  Swallowed  up  in  their  great  tropical  for- 
ests, they  are  as  pagan  and  uncivilized  as  the  inhabitants  of  Cen- 
tral Africa,  the  aborigines  of  Australia,  or  the  wild  tribes  of 
New  Guinea. 

Degree  of  Evangelization 

1 hough  during  the  Spanish  colonial  period  many  Catholic  mis- 
sions were  established  among  the  Indians  of  Mexico  and  Central 
America,  a very  great  degree  of  paganism  survives.  The  high- 
land Indians  are  nearly  all  nominally  Catholics,  but,  as  in  other 
parts  of  Latin  America,  there  is  but  a thin  varnish  of  Christianity 
over  an  underlying  character  of  distinctly  pagan  nature.  In  the 
lowlands  even  this  is  often  lacking.  The  missions  established 
there  have  long  been  in  ruins,  the  fields  and  roads  overgrown, 
their  buildings  nothing  but  mouldering  walls. 

Evangelical  agencies  have  accomplished  little  more.  Though 
there  are  Protestant  missions  in  almost  all  the  large  cities,  the 
work  undertaken  has  been  limited  almost  entirely  to  the  Spanish- 
speaking elements. 

wage  or.  more  generally,  under  the  orders  of  the  finca  owner  to 
whose  estate  they  belong.  They  have  no  voice  in  the  government 
and  no  social  recognition,  being  generally  little  above  the  status 


22 


CHAPTER  III 


A SUGGESTED  PROGRAM  FOR  SERVING  THE 
INDIANS  OF  LATIN  AMERICA 

Highland  Indians  of  South  America 

In  view  of  the  great  need ; in  view  of  the  splendid  promise ; in 
view  of  the  urgent  desire  of  many  Indians  for  an  education ; in 
view  of  the  often  expressed  encouragement  from  the  government 
authorities  of  these  countries,  a widely  extended  work  should  be 
undertaken  among  these  submerged  races  of  the  highlands. 

Any  program  of  operations  for  instruction  and  evangelization 
should  be  adapted  to  the  peculiar  needs  of  the  Indian.  He  mmst 
be  helped,  largely  right  at  home.  Hence  many  stations  will  be 
required.  The  program  should  include  particularly  the  following 
features ; evangelization,  primary'  education,  agricultural  instruc- 
tion, industrial  training,  and  medical  work,  especially  nursing.  It 
should  provide  for  a few  well-equipped  central  stations,  located 
in  the  centers  of  densest  aboriginal  population,  vcith  a number  of 
branch  stations  that  will  reach  the  Indians  who  live  in  scattered 
communities.  The  central  stations  should  have  boarding  depart- 
ments for  both  boys  and  girls,  developed  on  a self-help  basis. 

Beginning  from  the  south,  the  following  program  is  suggested. 
Beginnings  in  a small  way  have  already  been  made  in  establish- 
ing stations  by  a few  missionaries  at  some  of  the  points  men- 
tioned : 

Bolivia.  A strong  central  station  in  the  southern  part  of  the 
country  for  the  Quechua-speaking  Indians  there.  Probably  the 
best  location  for  climate,  possibilities  of  agriculture,  accessible 
population,  etc.,  would  be  in  the  province  of  Charcas,  Department 
of  Potosi,  where  the  independent  Bolivian  Indian  Mission  ( Brit- 
ish) has  already  opened  several  stations.  If  another  district  is 
preferred  the  neighborhood  of  Tupiza  would  probably  be  found 
suitable.  Another  such  institution  should  be  located  in  northern 
Bolivia,  in  the  Aymara  region  about  Lake  Titicaca.  Here  is  the 
densest  Indian  population  in  Bolivia,  the  province  of  Omasuyos 
showing  about  100  persons  per  square  mile,  almost  entirely  rural. 
(An  ideal  location  for  this  mission  would  be  the  Island  of  the 
Sun  in  Lake  Titicaca.  It  is  centrally  located,  near  the  point 
where  steamer  route  and  land  road  cross  at  the  strait  of  Tiquina. 


23 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


It  has  been  from  time  immemorial  a sacred  spot  among  all  the 
Indians  of  the  Titicaca  basin.  It  contains  some  800  Indian  inhabi- 
tants who  would  form  the  nucleus  of  the  work.  It  is  a strategic 
and  charming  spot,  one  of  the  most  desirable  for  its  situation  and 
character  of  any  point  in  the  whole  continent.  It  consists  of  two 
large  farms  with  apparently  clear  titles  and  should  cost  somewhere 
about  $200,000.  If  not  possible  to  buy  the  entire  island,  a site 
could  probably  be  purchased  there.  Both  owners  belong  to  dis- 
tinguished liberal  families,  who  would  be  in  sympathy  with  the 
work  of  uplifting  the  Indian.) 

Fern.  One  would  naturally  think  first  of  the  Cuzco  valley  as 
the  point  where  a central  station  should  be  established.  Here 
already  flourishes  the  mission  maintained  by  the  Evangelical 
Union  of  South  America,  but  there  is  a large  population  of  pure 
Indians  in  that  and  the  neighboring  valleys. 

Another  important  center  of  pure  Indian  settlement  is  the 
province  of  Huaraz,  where  the  densest  population  in  the  republic 
is  found. 

Ecuador.  In  Ecuador  a central  station  should  be  opened  at 
Ambato,  Rio  Bamba,  or  some  neighboring  point,  or  at  Cuenca,  in 
all  of  which  places  there  is  a large  Indian  population  to  draw 
from.  The  last-named  place,  though  not  yet  connected  by  rail 
with  the  coast,  has  an  important  commerce.  It  has  some  30,000 
inhabitants,  mo.stly  of  Indian  blood.  Ambato  is  the  seat  of  an 
annual  fair  to  which  Indians  and  others  come  from  all  the  sur- 
rounding districts.  During  those  gatherings  its  population  is 
probably  doubled.  This  circumstance  would  afford  an  excellent 
opportunity  to  make  known  the  work  of  the  institution  located 
there  and  to  disseminate  the  Gospel. 

Colombia.  The  need  for  separate  Indian  institutions  is  less  in 
the  Colombian  highlands  than  in  the  other  republics,  for  its  abor- 
iginal population  have  learned  Spanish  to  a greater  extent  and  mix 
with  the  other  elements  of  the  country  more  than  elsewhere.  The 
department  of  Boyaca  offers  the  best  location  for  a central  Indian 
mission.  Here  the  population  is  dense  and  composed  chiefly  of 
full-blooded  Indians.  There  are  no  large  cities  but  many  small 
Indian  towns.  Only  3 per  cent,  of  the  population  is  said  to  attend 
school.  (P.  J.  Eder,  “Colombia,”  London,  1913.)  Probably  the 
neighborhood  of  Tunia  or  Chiquinquira  would  be  most  suitable. 

Besides  these  strong  central  stations  there  should  be  established 


24 


A Suggested  Program 


in  each  of  these  four  republics  from  four  to  ten  branch  stations, 
manned  with  one  American  couple  and  one  or  two  native  helpers. 
These  small  stations  are  necessary  because  the  centers  of  Indian 
population  are  greatly  scattered,  and  means  of  communication 
are  badly  lacking.  A small  equipment  only  would  be  necessary. 
A few  acres  of  ground,  a residence  and  a schoolhouse,  which  could 
be  used  also  as  chapel,  would  constitute  most  of  the  outfit  required. 
Each  should  be  provided  with  a dispensary,  and  should  give  simple 
practical  instruction  in  agriculture  and  perhaps  something  in  the 
way  of  industrial  training.  In  all  probability  many  of  these 
secondary  stations  would  soon  develop  sufficiently  to  have  added 
to  them  a boarding  department  and  the  other  features  characteri^- 
ing  the  central  stations. 


Resume 

Central  Stations  : Bolivia,  2 ; Peru,  2 ; Ecuador,  1 ; Colombia,  1. 

Branch  Stations:  Bolivia,  10;  Peru,  10;  Ecuador,  6;  Colom- 
bia, 4. 

This  program  would  require,  in  addition  to  the  present  workers, 
a force  about  as  follows: 

Central  Stations,  each  of  the  six  proposed : 3 missionary  fam- 
ilies, 4 native  workers. 

Branch  Stations,  each  of  the  thirty  proposed : 1 missionary 

family,  1 native  worker. 

Utilize  the  Fairs 

In  addition  to  the  above  programme,  there  is  one  feature  that 
might  be  added  with  very  great  advantage,  if  properly  developed. 
In  every  one  of  these  Andean  republics,  with  their  great  variety 
of  climatic  and  soil  conditions,  and  the  consequent  diversity  in 
production,  there  exists  a system  of  markets  and  fairs  which  dates 
from  time  immemorial.  The  markets  are  weekly  or  bi-weekly 
affairs,  the  fairs  generally  annual.  On  these  occasions  people, 
particularly  the  Indians,  gather  from  far  and  near,  bringing  their 
produce  to  sell  or  coming  to  buy  the  products  of  regions  different 
from  their  own.  At  these  gatherings  one  can  find  inhabitants  of 
widely  separated  districts,  many  of  whom  leave  their  native 
regions  only  on  such  occasions.  Bible  colporteurs  have  already 
taken  advantage  of  these  fairs  to  disseminate  the  Word,  but,  as 


25 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


most  of  the  participants  are  illiterate,  the  written  page  offers  little 
attraction  for  them.  But  if  a system  of  evangelistic  meetings 
and  conferences  could  be  organized,  intended  particularly  to  take 
advantage  of  these  gatherings,  it  should  be  possible  to  reach  many 
thousands  who  otherwise  would  never  hear  the  Gospel. 

Lowland  Indians  of  South  America 

The  most  that  can  be  accomplished  toward  the  evangelization 
of  these  Indians  within  the  next  five  years  will  be  the  occupation 
of  strategic  points,  within  reach  of  the  greatest  numbers  of  Indian 
settlements.  This  can  be  done  best  by  following  the  methods 
employed  by  traders  and  rubber  men  in  using  the  only  means  of 
transportation,  the  river  routes.  To  this  end  it  is  suggested  that 
mission  centers  be  established  at  the  following  points,  equipped 
with  hospital,  medical  supplies,  motor  boats,  interpreters,  etc. 
As  there  is  a considerable  white  population  in  most  of  the  sug- 
gested centers,  it  would  be  well  to  provide  hospital,  medical, 
evangelistic  and  probably  educational  equipment,  on  a small  scale 
at  least,  for  these  whites.  The  force  of  workers  for  each  such 
center  should  be  about  as  follows : 

1  Missionary  evangelist  for  Spanish-speaking  population ; 

1 Woman  nurse  for  same  population ; 

1 Doctor,  at  head  of  hospital ; 

2 Men  nurses,  or  doctor’s  assistants ; 

1 Teacher  (to  superintend  also  industrial  and  agricultural 
work)  ; 

3 Native  helpers. 

The  suggested  centers  are : 

a.  Upper  Orinoco,  probably  at  San  Fernando  de  Atabapo  ; 

b.  Upper  Amazon,  probably  at  Iquitos  ; 

c.  Lower  Amazon,  probably  at  Manaos ; 

d.  Tierra  del  Fuego,  probably  at  Ushuaia  (or  Punta  Arenas)  ; 

e.  Araucania,  probably  on  the  Argentine  side  of  the  Andes. 

or  at  Yillarica,  near  the  border. 

(This  last  mission  would  be  a land  station,  equipped  with 
church,  hospital,  industrial  school  and  farm,  similar  to  the  exist- 


26 


A Suggested  Program 


ing  institution  at  Temuco  of  the  South  American  Missionary 
Society.) 

Mexico  and  Central  America 

In  Mexico  the  Indian  population  as  a distinct  element  has 
received  exceedingly  small  consideration.  Practically  no  insti- 
tutions have  been  established  for  them,  though,  as  we  have  seen, 
they  require  a separate  form  of  work  and  a distinct  approach. 
They  form  a large  proportion  of  the  population.  In  Central 
America  the  same  situation  exists  with  the  exception  of  work 
among  the  Mosquito  tribes  in  Nicaragua  and  some  limited  attempts 
recently  made  to  reach  certain  Indian  tribes  in  Guatemala. 

Work  undertaken  among  the  Indians  of  these  countries  should 
be  directed  both  toward  the  evangelization  and  the  uplift  of  the 
people.  It  should  carry  the  Gospel  to  them  and  at  the  same  time 
extend  to  them  every  help  possible  toward  ameliorating  their 
physical,  intellectual  and  moral  condition.  In  all  probability  it 
will  not  be  many  years  before  these  Indians  will  be  brought  into 
far  fuller  contact  with  modern  civilization.  Some  of  them  have 
already  been  reached  by  traders,  mining  men,  and  others  who  are 
developing  the  resources  of  tropical  lands.  The  Indians  must  be 
prepared  to  meet  these  new  conditions.  To  convert  them  to 
Christianity  and  leave  them  defenseless  and  unprepared  for  the 
inevitable  contact  with  modern  life  would  be  little  less  than  crim- 
inal. Hence  it  is  not  enough  to  send  itinerant  evangelists  among 
them.  Permanent  stations  must  be  established  wherever  the  pop- 
ulation is  sufficiently  fixed  or  can  be  made  so.  Medical  aid  must 
be  carried  to  them,  for  they  generally  suffer  greatly  from  pre- 
ventable diseases,  and  their  death  rate,  especially  among  children, 
is  very  high.  Elementary  education  must  also  accompany  all 
efforts  toward  evangelization.  Industrial  training,  particularly 
agricultural,  should  be  given.  For  both  the  sedentary  agricul- 
tural tribes  who  inhabit  the  uplands  and  the  savage  tribes  of  the 
lowlands  such  uplift  agencies  are  necessary. 

Due  to  the  mountainous  character  of  the  country  and  the  con- 
sequent distribution  of  the  people  into  widely  separated  settle- 
ments, with  a great  variety  of  languages,  it  will  be  more  desirable 
to  establish  a number  of  small  centers  rather  than  fewer  large 
ones.  The  lack  of  sufficient  means  of  communication  makes  this 
the  more  necessary.  After  the  work  has  been  well  begun,  prob- 


27 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


ably  within  ten  years,  it  may  be  found  desirable  to  open  a few 
major  stations  that  shall  carry  on  the  training  given  in  the  small 
centers  proposed.  As  in  each  station  there  should  be  provision 
made  for  evangelization,  elementary  education,  medical  and  dis- 
pensary work  and  industrial  training,  including  agriculture,  it 
would  require  a force  composed  largely  of  laymen.  A staff  of 
two  missionary  families  (evangelist,  physician  and  educator),  with 
two  native  helpers,  should  be  placed  in  each  station.  The  follow- 
ing centers  of  densest  Indian  population  are  suggested  as  the  most 
suitable  regions  for  the  location  of  these  stations : 

In  Mexico:  20  stations  as  follows:  Two  in  Oaxaca,  and  one 
each  in  Chiapas,  Guerrero,  Michoacan,  Hidalgo,  Tlaxcala,  Mex- 
ico, Queretaro,  Morelos,  Guanajuato,  Jalisco,  Puebla,  Yucatan, 
Sonora.  Sinaloa.  Zacatecas,  Aguascalientes,  San  Luis  Potosi 
Durango. 

In  Guatemala,  with  its  large  percentage  of  Indian  population, 
two  stations,  similar  in  character  to  those  suggested  for  the  civi- 
lized Indians  of  Mexico,  should  be  opened,  one  in  the  north,  one 
in  the  west. 

Salvador  should  have  one,  probably  at  Cojutepeque.  Nicaragua 
should  have  one,  probably  at  Matagalpa.  Honduras  should  have 
one,  probably  at  Santa  Roe  de  Copan. 

The  uncivilized  Indians  of  Central  America  and  Mexico  prob- 
ably do  not  number  over  3{X),000.  But  they  are  widely  distrib- 
uted, live  in  scattered  settlements  and  are  hard  to  reach.  They 
are  found  chiefly  along  the  forested  coastal  belts,  but  there  are 
also  a number  of  tribes  in  northern  Mexico  and  in  the  Sierra 
Madre  mountains  in  the  north  central  part  of  this  republic.  (See 
Carl  Lumholtz,  “Unknown  Mexico,”  N.  Y.,  1902.)  The  follow- 
ing four  stations  are  proposed  as  a beginning  of  work  among  these 
uncivilized  Indians : 

Nicaragua,  1,  probably  on  the  upper  Bluefields  River; 

Panama,  1,  probably  on  the  Gulf  of  San  Bias; 

Mexico,  1,  probably  in  the  State  of  Campeche;  and 

Honduras,  1,  probably  in  the  province  of  Mosquita. 


28 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MISSIONARY  POLICY  FOR  INDIAN  WORK. 


The  following  paper  by  Rev.  R.  J.  Hunt,  a missionary  of  the  South 
American  Missionary  Society,  which  has  the  largest'  and  most  success- 
ful work  among  South  American  Indians,  describes  the  methods  which 
this  society  uses. 


It  may  seem  gratuitous,  perhaps,  to  remark  that  the  two  first 
essentials  of  successful  missionary  enterprise  are  residence  among 
the  people  and  the  acquisition  of  their  language.  The  missionary 
must  identify  himself  with  the  people,  adapting  himself  and  his 
message  to  the  existing  circumstances  and  general  mode  of  life  of 
the  people.  During  six  months  of  the  year  many  of  the  Indians 
may  be  found  in  civilized  surroundings  at  work  in  the  cane-fields 
or  in  the  forests.  The  missionary  can  live  in  comfortable  quarters 
and  visit  these  workers  and,  as  many  of  them  know  Spanish,  he 
can  talk  with  them  freely  in  their  rough  shanties  when  the  day’s 
work  is  done.  But  to  the  Indian  mind  this  savours  of  patronage 
and  the  missionary  remains  an  outsider,  albeit  a friendly  one: 
he  never  becomes  truly  identified  with  the  tribe.  Permanent 
centres  of  work  must  be  established  in  places  where  the  natives 
can  feel  at  home  and  where  they  are  free  to  invite  or  receive  visits 
from  their  friends.  Here  can  be  established  the  schools  and  work- 
shops, church  and  dispensary,  and  all  the  other  accessories  of  full 
station  life — the  home  of  the  missionary,  from  which  he  can  sally 
forth  on  visitations  to  other  districts,  the  home  of  his  converts 
(actual  or  prospective)  to  which  they  can  return  from  their  labors 
or  travels. 

Once  the  Indians  begin  to  feel  that  the  missionaries  and  the 
Mission  Station  with  all  that  it  contains  belong  to  them  real  work 
is  commenced.  The  fundamental  desire  for  possession  blends  with 
other  impulses  and  leads  them  to  adopt  ways  of  life  and  modes  of 
thought  hitherto  unknown.  They  are  prepared  to  believe  the  mis- 
sionary’s message  or  to  adopt  his  ideas  because  he  is  owned  by 
them,  or  he  owns  them — he  has  constituted  himself  a member  of 


29 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


the  tribe,  and  is  in  consequence,  trusted  and  obeyed.  At  first  the 
missionary  is  adopted  by  a few  families  who  naturally  are  inclined 
to  guard  their  property  with  rather  jealous  care  and  to  resent 
others  sharing  in  their  possession  until  the  more  comprehensive 
idea  of  the  tribe  and  nation  is  inculcated. 

1. 

For  reaching  the  primitive  folk  of  the  Chaco  the  establishing 
of  a cattle-farm  is  an  essential  adjunct  to  the  station.  A farm 
gives  work  to  a few  men  and  women  and  pays  its  own  way,  and 
forms  a splendid  training  ground  for  the  young  of  both  sexes. 
The  working  of  a farm  brings  into  play  practically  all  the  indus- 
tries that  can  be  profitably  taught  to  a rural  population,  and  al- 
though no  great  number  receives  regular  employment,  there  are 
ample  opportunities  for  all  to  gain  knowledge  and  practice  of 
useful  occupations,  thus  fitting  them  to  obtain  a livelihood  among 
the  squatters.  Men  who  can  work  cattle,  drive  carts,  plough,  fence, 
square  timber,  build  houses,  work  in  wood,  iron  or  leather,  and  the 
like  can  easily  find  employment  at  good  pay.  In  the  same  way  girls 
trained  to  milk  and  cook,  wash  and  mend  clothes,  and  other  simple 
crafts,  are  eagerly  sought  after  by  the  better  class  settlers.  The 
farm  is  ideal  because  all  the  members  of  the  community  can  be 
lifted  up  together;  to  develop  one  section  or  one  sex  and  not  the 
other  retards  the  general  progress. 

A purely  evangelistic  mission  only  scratches  the  surface,  the 
inculcation  of  industry  and  the  definite  training  of  the  people  to 
various  trades  may  not  give  quick  results,  but  it  ploughs  deep  and 
eventually  produces  abundance  of  fruit.  A Mission  supplied  with 
men  capable  of  teaching  trades,  business  ways  and  simple  agricul- 
ture as  well  as  spiritual  truths  stands  every  chance  of  ultimate 
success.  If  godly  settlers  could  be  secured  who  would  employ  and 
train  the  natives  under  their  care  the  work  of  the  mission  could 
be  enhanced  proportionately.  Among  the  Matacos  we  are  doing 
what  we  can  to  train  industrially  the  young  people  of  both  sexes, 
but  we  are  not  in  a position  to  employ  many  work-people,  and 
having  but  a small  establishment  are  limited  in  our  resources  and 
variety  of  occupations. 


30 


A Missionary  Policy 


2. 

Elementary  education  is  essential,  the  simple  subjects  of  writing, 
reading,  counting,  and  singing  being  taught  in  the  language  of  the 
people  and  in  Spanish.  The  children  pass  naturally  from  the  school 
to  the  workshop,  where  they  can  put  into  practice  what  they  have 
learnt.  In  poor  districts  it  is  often  necessary  to  give  out  small 
rations  of  food  and  clothing  to  the  children.  Adults  going  away 
for  work  may  be  induced  to  leave  their  children  behind  for  educa- 
tion if  a certain  amount  of  food  and  clothing  is  provided.  The 
singing  of  the  scholars  is  an  important  factor  in  conducting  the 
recitative  and  sung  parts  of  the  religious  services.  The  chief 
difficulty  in  school  work  consists  in  the  irregular  attendance  of  the 
scholars  due  to  the  circumstances  of  their  parents  who  are  fre- 
quently compelled  to  move  from  one  place  to  another  to  obtain 
employment.  Some  of  the  more  superstitious  and  backward  fami- 
lies, if  they  do  not  actually  prevent  their  children  coming  to  school, 
give  little  encouragement  to  them  to  come  and  frequently  take  them 
off  for  a day  or  two  here  and  there  on  some  paltry  excuse. 

The  medical  man  gains  prestige  by  going  steadily  ahead,  not 
worrying  about  the  witch-doctor  or  the  magical  beliefs  of  the 
people.  He  must  use  tact  and  common-sense  until  he  has  com- 
pletely won  the  confidence  of  the  people  in  general,  who  will  then 
flock  to  him  for  all  sicknesses  great  and  small.  At  first  the  mis- 
sionary’s doctor’s  ministrations  will  be  assisted  by  the  charming  of 
the  native  practitioner — the  former  relieve  the  bodily  symptoms,  the 
latter  soothes  the  spiritual  ailments.  The  witch-doctor  himself, 
being  an  intelligent  man,  will  be  one  of  the  first  to  seek  medical 
aid  in  time  of  personal  need.  The  Indians  of  the  Argentine  Chaco 
have  had  some  severe  epidemics  of  small  pox,  influenza,  measles, 
etc.  and  are  to  a great  extent  prepared  to  receive  medical  help 
because  they  know  that  their  own  official  curers  are  at  a loss  in 
epidemics  and  in  cases  requiring  surgical  skill : and,  further,  they 
are  constantly  seeing  the  white  settlers  seeking  the  aid  of,  and 
putting  the  most  profound  trust  in,  the  trained  medical  man. 

3. 

The  land,  originally  occupied  by  the  Matacos  and  other  Indians 
of  the  Argentine  Chaco  has  for  the  most  part,  been  sold  to  private 


31 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


owners  and  occupied  by  them  or  their  agents,  so  that  today  the 
Indians  are  very  much  like  sheep  without  a shepherd  scattered 
and  harassed  without  any  certain  dwelling-place.  Stocking  of  the 
camps  and  the  opening  out  of  roads  have  resulted  in  the  gradual 
disappearance  of  wild  animals  so  that  hunting  is  now  a very 
precarious  way  of  getting  a living.  Fishing  in  the  rivers  and 
gathering  of  wild  fruits  from  the  forests  are  the  only  means  left 
for  securing  natural  food  supplies.  Being,  therefore  to  all  intents 
and  purposes  without  a permanent  home  and  without  natural  pro- 
vision for  food  and  clothing,  the  people  welcomed  the  little  Mission 
Station  of  the  S.  A.  M.  S.  on  the  Bermejo. 

The  land  was  divided  up  into  lots  ( 100  x 200  metres)  and  each 
family  presented  with  a plot  which  was  large  enough  for  a house 
and  garden,  and,  above  all,  a home  secure  against  intrusion  pro- 
vided that  the  three  simple  rules  of  the  Mission  were  kept,  viz. : 
(1)  respect  fo  rhis  neighbor’s  property;  (2)  absence  of  drunken 
feasts;  (3)  sale  of  their  daughters  to  squatters  for  immoral  pur- 
poses. The  plan  has  met  with  good  success  and  visitors  from  all 
parts  call  and  stay  for  a time  and  many  requests  are  preferred  for 
land  tenure  on  the  estate.  Here  are  brought  together  families 
from  different  parts,  but  apart  from  trivial  jealousies  and  petty 
annoyances,  no  serious  troubles  occur ; and  the  people  go  and  come 
freely  according  to  the  demands  of  their  work  or  the  impulses  of 
their  pleasures.  The  missionaries  are  recognized  as  their  chiefs 
and  their  commands  respected. 

The  general  attitude  of  the  white  settlers  is  not  one  of  kind  con- 
sideration to  the  subdued  aborigines,  but  rather  that  of  harshness 
and  disdain,  arising  partly  out  of  fear,  and  partly  out  of  aversion. 
The  Indians  respect  only  those  who  treat  them  fairly  and  while 
they  may  shrink  from  those  who  abuse  and  unjustly  treat  them, 
and  even  in  their  extreme  poverty  cringe  before  the  wealthy,  they 
cherish,  nevertheless,  feelings  of  animosity  against  the  stranger 
dwelling  in  their  land.  In  spite  of  these  things  not  only  business 
relations  are  maintained  between  the  two  but  even  concubinage 
exists,  the  children  resulting  from  the  union  being  frequently 
registered  as  citizens.  It  is  only  natural  that  many  of  these  child- 
ren renounce  their  mother’s  people  and  scorn  to  be  called  a Mataco. 
If  the  race  is  to  be  saved  eventually  from  a social  point  of  view. 


32 


A Missionary  Policy 


intermarriage  with  the  settlers  (many  of  whom  have  Indian  blood) 
seems  inevitable.  The  Indian  women  appreciate  the  attentions  of 
the  squatters,  and  not  unfrequently  solicit  sexual  intercourse,  which 
has  a corresponding  ill  effect  on  the  native  family  life.  To  raise 
the  standard  of  marriage  among  themselves  is  no  easy  task,  owing 
more  particularly  to  the  low  level  of  morality  maintained  by  the 
foreign  settlers.  Desire  for  food  and  clothes  and  freedom  from 
irksome  duties,  added  to  strong  sexual  desire,  are  probably  the 
governing  motives  which  lead  the  young  girl  and  attractive  wife 
astray.  Consequently  if  congenial  surroundings  could  be  secured, 
accompanied  by  regular  and  well-paid  employment  of  the  men- 
folk, with  perhaps  a few  animals  and  some  property  acquired,  the 
women  would  be  content  to  remain  at  home  and  the  men  would 
cease  to  be  jealous  of  their  wives. 

If  conjugal  fidelity  could  be  maintained,  drink  banished,  regular 
employment  assured,  a suitable  home  and  garden  owned,  and  their 
lives  ruled  by  the  principles  of  Christianity,  the  Indians  of  the 
Chaco  might  yet  become  a happy  and  useful  people  and  a power 
to  the  state. 

How  can  the  missionary  create  a spiritual  incentive?  How  can 
he  lift  the  minds  of  the  savage,  downtrodden  by  the  invader, 
abused  and  exploited,  insecure  in  his  dwelling,  molested  in  his  old 
occupations  and  beliefs,  suffering  and  struggling  in  the  unequal 
race  for  food  and  clothing — how  can  he  raise  him  to  think  of 
spiritual  things?  Chiefly  by  the  force  and  example  of  a Christlike 
life.  The  missionary  must  imitate  his  Master.  The  Christ  wor- 
shipped by  the  Indians  can  only  be  the  Christ  which  the  servant 
has  portrayed  by  his  own  daily  life.  By  a thousand  little  kind- 
nesses, by  help  in  sickness  and  trouble,  by  constant  sympathy  in 
all  that  concerns  the  daily  needs  and  experiences,  by  giving  proof 
of  his  friendship  and  disinterestedness,  by  the  tender  love  of  a 
consecrated  life,  the  missionary  becomes  the  trusted  friend  and 
beloved  leader. 

When  this  relation  is  fully  established  the  natives  will  do  things 
for  their  friend  because  he  wants  them  done.  They  will  be  pre- 
pared to  protect  him,  to  suffer  for  him,  to  supply  him  with  material 
necessities,  grieve  for  his  absence  and  cheerfully  seek  his  company. 


33 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


He  can  then  begin  to  teach  them  the  great  truths  of  the  Bible  and 
unfold  to  their  sympathetic  vision  the  love  of  the  Eternal  Father 

Very  little  is  gained  and  often  loss  is  sustained  by  tirades  against 
native  beliefs  and  wholesale  condemnation  of  old  customs.  Primi- 
tive folk  do  not  like  to  change  their  ways.  In  many  primitive 
languages  there  exists  an  habitual  tense  form  to  the  verbs,  which  is 
abundant  proof  of  their  veneration  for  the  ancient,  the  conven- 
tional, that  which  has  always  been.  The  appeal  to  the  Bible  as  the 
ancient  records  of  God’s  dealings  with  our  ancestors  and  of  His 
law  communicated  to  them  is  of  supreme  importance.  Age  is 
respected,  and  the  advice  of  the  old  man  receives  marked  attention. 
The  Gospel  is  old  but  a remarkably  vigorous  flower  and  if  its  seeds 
are  widely  scattered  it  will  grow  in  such  profusion  that  the  weeds 
of  superstition  and  the  evils  of  degenerate  customs  will  eventually 
succumb,  but  the  way  to  this  desired  end  is  one  of  patience  and 
love. 

Regular  services  with  forms  of  prayer,  praise  and  confession, 
the  atmosphere  of  a reverently  conducted  worship,  the  style  of 
building,  the  tones  of  the  preacher,  can  all  be  used  as  helps  to  the 
creation  of  a spiritual  incentive.  It  must  perforce  be  gradual,  line 
upon  line,  here  a little  and  there  a little,  but  just  as  constant  drip- 
ping wears  away  stones,  so  the  outward  acts  of  worship  and  the 
use  of  words  in  prayer  and  song  constantly  repeated  take  root  in 
the  natives’  hearts  and  minds  and  eventually  produce  fruit. 

In  all  this  one  does  not  forget  that  the  true  spiritual  life  is  the 
work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God,  and  spiritual  fruit  can  only  be 
obtained  by  the  messenger  living  in  closest  communion  with  God, 
a clean  vessel  meet  for  the  Master’s  use. 


34 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


Only  a limited  number  of  titles  are  here  presented.  Additional 

references  will  be  found  in  the  text  and  footnotes  of  this  pamphlet. 

A large  amount  of  additional  material  is  found  in  the  Missionary 

Research  Library  and  the  files  of  the  Committee  on  Cooperation 

in  Latin  America,  25  Madison  Avenue,  New  York  City. 

A Sara,  Felix  de 

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Madrid,  Impr.  de  Sanchez,  1847.  2 vols. 

Bibolotii.  Benigno 

Moseteno  vocabulary  and  treatises  . . , 1917  Evan- 

ston and  Chicago,  Northwestern  L’^niversity,  1917. 

Bingham,  Hiram 

Inca  Land,  Explorations  in  the  Highlands  of  Peru,  Plough- 
ton,  Mifflin  & Co.,  1922. 

Bower,  Reuben  Edward 

The  unreached  Indian;  General  Board  of  Eoreign  Missions, 
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Breti,  IViHiam  Henry 

The  Indian  tribes  of  Guiana ; London,  Bell  and  Daldy,  1868. 

Church.  George  Earl 

Aborigines  of  .South  America;  ed.  by  an  old  friend,  Clem- 
ents R.  Markham,  K.  C.  B.  London,  Chapman  and  Hall, 
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Clark, 

Bananal,  or  Among  Pagan  Indians  in  Brazil,  Sao  Paulo, 
1923. 

Clough.  R.  Stewart 

The  Amazons.  London,  South  American  Missionary  So- 
ciety, 1873. 


35 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


Coope,  Anna 

Anna  Coope,  sky  pilot  of  the  San  Bias  Indians ; an  auto- 
biography, N.  Y.,  American  Tract  Society,  1917. 

Cooper,  John  Montgomery 

Analytical  and  critical  bibliography  of  the  tribes  of  Tierra 
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Printing  Office,  1917. 

Farabee,  William  Curtis 

The  central  Arawaks.  Philadelphia.  The  University 
Museum,  1918. 

Farabee,  William  Curtis 

Indian  tribes  of  eastern  Peru;  Cambridge,  Mass.,  The 
Museum,  1922. 

Ferris,  Anita  Brockzvay 

The  land  of  the  golden  man.  N.  Y.,  Missionary  Educa- 
tion Movement  of  the  United  States  and  Canada,  1916. 

Furlong.  C.  W . 

Southernmost  peojple  of  the  world.  ( In  Harper’s  Monthly 
magazine,  June,  1909.) 

Garnio,  Manuel 

La  Poblacion  del  Valle  de  Teotihuacan.  Mexico,  Secretaria 
de  Agricultura  y Fomento,  Depto.  de  Antropologia,  1923. 

Glennie,  R.,  and  Blake,  G.  S. 

Report  of  the  deputation  to  South  America,  1909-1910. 
(Baptist  Missionary  Society.) 

Grubb,  W.  Barbrooke 

Among  the  Indians  of  the  Paraguayan  Chaco:  a story  of 
missionary  work  in  South  America.  London,  C.  Murray  & 
Co.,  South  American  Missionary  Society,  1904. 

Grubb,  W.  Barbrooke 

Church  in  the  wilds;  the  . . . story  of  the  establish- 

ment of  the  South  American  mission  amongst  the  hitherto 
savage  and  intractable  natives  of  the  Paraguayan  Chaco;  ed. 
by  H.  T.  M.  Jones.  London,  Seeley,  1914. 


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The  problem  of  the  South  American  Indian.  (In  The  East 
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Grubb,  W.  Barbrooke 

An  unknown  people  in  an  unknown  land ; Philadelphia,  J. 
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Hay,  A.  R. 

Saints  and  savages  : Brazil’s  Indian  problem  . . . with 

a foreword  by  Rev.  J.  H.  Jowett..  London,  Hodder,  n.d. 

Hrdlicka,  Ales,  i.e.  Alois  Ferdinand 

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Jaguaribe,  Domingos 

O imperio  dos  Incas  no  Peru  e no  Mexico.  Lido  no  Insti- 
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“The  apostle  of  the  Indians  of  Guiana.’’  London,  Gard- 
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Joyce,  Thomas  Athol 

South  American  archaeology;  N.  Y.,  Putnam,  1912. 

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Central  and  South  America.  Ed.  by  Sir  Clements  Mark- 
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only  vol.  1.) 

Keller-Leuzinger,  Franz 

The  Amazon  and  Madeira  rivers ; sketches  and  descriptions 
from  the  note-book  of  an  explorer.  London,  Chapman  and 
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37 


Indians  of  Latin  America 


Lange,  Algol 

In  the  Amazon  jungle;  N.  Y.  and  London,  G.  P.  Putnam’s 
Sons,  1912. 

Lange,  Algol 

The  lower  Amazon ; a narrative  of  explorations  in  the 
little  known  regions  of  the  state  of  Para.  N.  Y.  and  London, 
G.  P.  Putnam’s  Sons,  1914. 

Lara,  Horacio 

Cronica  de  la  x\raucania; Santiago  de  Chile,  Impr. 

de  “El  Progreso,”  1889.  2 vols. 

Lalcham,  R.  E. 

Ethnology  of  the  Araucanos  (in  Journal  of  the  An- 
thropological Institute,  1909,  v.  39,  pp.  334-370). 

Magahaes,  General  Coulo  de 

O Selvagem.  Livraria  Magalhaes,  Rio  de  Janeiro,  1876. 

McBride,  G.  M. 

The  Land  Systems  of  Mexico,  American  Geographical 
Society,  New  York,  1923. 

Markham,  Sir  Clemcnls  Roberl 

Cuzco:  a journey  to  the  ancient  capital  of  Peru;  with  an 
account  of  the  history,  language,  literature,  and  antiquities 
of  the  Incas.  London,  Chapman  and  Hall,  1856. 

Markham,  Sir  Clemenls  Roherl  ed. 

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Newberry  Library,  Chicago.  Edward  E.  Ayer  collection. 

Bibliography  of  titles  on  missions  in  the  Ayer  collection. 
Newberry  Library,  Chicago,  n.  p.,  n.  pub.,  1915.  (Contains 
a section  on  missions  to  the  Indians  of  Mexico.) 

Nordenskjold,  Erland 

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